Jhoan Duran is locked and loaded as Phillies finally have their closer originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia
CLEARWATER, Fla. – When his native Dominican Republic requested his services for the upcoming World Baseball Classic, Jhoan Duran politely declined.
Nothing will get in the way of his being ready for this Phillies season.
Not even national pride.
“I want to be good for this year and try to help the team as much as I can and be prepared for that,” Duran said.
Duran’s focus showed Tuesday when he faced hitters for the first time this spring. He didn’t just saunter onto the field like one might for a practice session. He warmed up in the bullpen, swung open the gate, and ran to the mound as if there was a save to be had. All that was missing was the spectacular light show and 40,000-plus fans standing on their feet with cell phones illuminated.
“That’s what I do in the game so I want to do it in the live (batting practice), too,” Duran said. “It’s like a game. I’ve done that my whole career in the majors.”
Alec Bohm, one of the hitters Duran faced, noticed the closer’s entrance.
“He treated it like it was his first outing of the regular season,” Bohm said. “He’s locked in. It was cool to see.”
Bohm shared something funny in talking about the light show that accompanies Duran’s entrance into games at Citizens Bank Park.
“The lights go off and we have to wait for them to go back on so we can play catch in the infield,” the third baseman said. “You don’t want to take a throw in the face.”
Bohm, of course, doesn’t mind when the lights go off and the big tarantula starts pacing through flames on the right-field video screen. It usually means the Phillies are three outs from victory.
It’s been a while since the Phillies came into spring training without some question surrounding the closer position. In recent seasons, manager Rob Thomson mostly employed a closer-by-committee approach. Even when somebody put together a good stretch at the end of games, he was loath to anoint that person his closer.
All that changed when Duran arrived at the trade deadline last summer. Thomson gave the ball to the hulking 6-foot-5, 235-pound right-hander 19 times in save situations and Duran locked it down 16 times. In 20 2/3 innings, Duran struck out 27 and walked just one. For the season, including his time with Minnesota, he threw 271 pitches of 100 mph or more. Only Hunter Greene (296) of the Reds and Mason Miller (422) of the Padres brought the heat more often.
But there is more to Duran than just a big fastball. There is the “splinker”, which is part splitter, part sinker, a sweeper and a curveball.
Bohm smacked a sweeper high off the right-field wall in Tuesday’s live BP session. Duran threw 17 pitches overall.
“I saw a 98 on the iPad,” Bohm said. “And that’s his first time facing hitters.”
Bohm was the only regular to face Duran. He was happy to get the call.
“Practice or not, it’s still a top of the line closer,” Bohm said. “Any time you get to measure yourself up against that kind of stuff, it’s good. How else are you going to figure out where you’re at? I can go feel good in the cage all I want. For me it’s high velo, it’s a sinker, a sweeper, a breaking ball. That’s a guy getting the last three outs of a game. If you can get in there and feel like you can execute what you’re trying to do against that stuff, that will definitely give you some confidence.
“He’s definitely not a two-pitch guy, which you typically see in those big power arms. They’ve got their main pitch and another pitch to go to. For him to be able to mix multiple looks in there, it puts more things in your head you think he can go to. You get a breaking ball, now you get something hard running in on the hands. And if you’re not ready to pull the trigger on that 100, you’re not getting to it.”
Over the last few years, the Phillies have almost annually shopped for a closer at the trade deadline. That won’t happen this year. And Duran, 28, is under team control through 2027. Now, if lefty Jose Alvarado and righty Brad Keller can get him the ball, and Orion Kerkering and Tanner Banks can do their jobs as bridges to the late innings, the Phillies might have something in the bullpen.
Duran believes they do.
“Great arms, great talent,” he said. “We have everything in the bullpen.”
Most of all, they have a closer.
Finally.
“We won’t be saying, ‘Who’s out there? Who can we get?’ in July,” Bohm said. “We know who’s throwing the ninth. We’ve got a top guy coming into the game.”